The San Francisco 49ers have just three healthy wide receivers on the active roster going into Monday night's game against the Washington Commanders, leaving many 49ers fans hitting refresh over and over on the status of two key receivers: Mike Evans and Christian Kirk.
Coming off a legendary performance against the Seahawks, Evans did not practice all week, with injuries to his ribs and Achilles tendon. But he's listed as questionable to play for the 49ers, and in an appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show" on Monday morning, ESPN insider Adam Schefter said the 49ers are "optimistic" that Evans will be able to play on Monday night, something he's done all season long.
Kirk, meanwhile, had been nursing the calf injury that got him placed on injured reserve before the season began. But the veteran, who signed with San Francisco this offseason, returned to practice in a limited capacity all week. He's listed as questionable for Monday's game but remains on injured reserve. The 49ers will have to announce if he's being activated for the game by 1 p.m. on Monday.
The 49ers have had practically their entire wide receiver room suffer an injury this season, and that's not to mention the one that came before the season: Ricky Pearsall suffered a season-ending knee injury during training camp. Rookie De'Zhaun Stribling is out for at least another month with an ankle injury, Demarcus Robinson is still out with a high ankle sprain, and Deebo Samuel is expected to miss multiple weeks with a hamstring injury. The 49ers even signed former second-round pick Dante Pettis to the practice squad, only to see Pettis suffer a calf injury in his first week of practice and be unable to play. (Pettis was waived with an injury settlement.)
Evans has been banged up almost every week since training camp began, missing time with a quad strain, a foot injury and a pulled groin. During the season, Evans suffered a hip injury in Week 2, and then he fractured two ribs in Week 3. He's continued to play through the pain, and he shone in the rivalry matchup with the Seahawks last week, though he reported some type of Achilles injury this week in addition to the ribs.
Outside of the veteran duo, the 49ers have only the aforementioned trio of healthy wide receivers on the active roster: Jordan Watkins, Jacob Cowing and veteran Brandin Cooks, who already caught a key touchdown last week after San Francisco signed him in the middle of the season.
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This article originally published at The latest Mike Evans, Christian Kirk injury updates ahead of 49ers' Week 6 game.